Why the Collapse of Malta’s Azure Window Turned Me Into an Emotional Wreck

Just in case the title didn’t give it away, I can have a flair for the dramatics. It’s okay, take your 2 seconds to roll your eyes. Done? Awesome.

Seriously though, hearing about the sudden disappearance of Malta’s iconic Azure Window made me really, really sad (teary eyed typez; don’t judge). It was supposed to slowly corrode over time but no one said anything about a storm that would make it crumble into the Mediterranean Sea. I’m not secretly Maltese or anything, but I had a strong emotional affinity with the place for a lot of reasons.

1) Travel Bonds

Squinting into the sun seems to be my favourite pose.

As a traveller, I tend to form these crazy bonds with the places I visit. Even if I know I may never come back, I just feel secure in the knowledge that, if I WERE to go back, things would pretty much be as they were. At least the things that are borne out of Mother Nature’s generosity or have great historical significance. I can deal with the other stuff changing.

2) The Honeymoon Effect

Nothing more touristy than a selfie.

We want to Malta for our honeymoon so, of course, it got extra sentimentality points. The Azure Window was one of the first places S and I visited together and took cheesy tourist photos at. It was also the first place where we got separated during our trip (we weren’t actually separated, as it turned out, he was just hiding behind some bushes -.-). But y’know. Memories.

3) Game of Thrones Lovin’

Photo: Game of Thrones/HBO

Remember Daenerys and Khal Drogo’s wedding from the first season of Game of Thrones? Yep, that was shot here. And in case you were wondering (even if you weren’t, I’m just gonna go ahead and tell you) we’re both GIANT GoT fans. You know the ones who collect action figures and wear GoT t-shirts and are, basically, incurable consumers when it comes to anything to do with the show? That kind. S even wanted to play the GoT theme song at his wedding entrance.

Photo: Reuters

So yeah. Knowing that the site now looks like this, makes me super sad. Fine, emotional wreck was an exaggeration but it got your attention, didn’t it? Going to go drown my sorrows in a tub of ice cream now. You may join me (bring your own ice cream, though) or read about happier travel times here.

19 thoughts on “Why the Collapse of Malta’s Azure Window Turned Me Into an Emotional Wreck”

I understand what you mean with the travel bonds, it happens to me as well. Whenever I heard sad news about a country I’ve visited it always affects me more than if it’s about a place I don’t know. And well, if in addition it was your honeymoon destination, I understand even more!
And I didn’t realize that was the location of the wedding in Game of Thrones (I did see the first season but didn’t pay attention, oups!).

Cute post! I know exactly what you mean about places touching your heart. I think we have to remember that situations like this, are just a reminder of how important it is to live in the present and enjoy how special that moment is. What do you think?

It looks so different now! I’ve never been which makes me even sadder because now I will never get to see it. It’s devastating but you can take some solace in that you were able to visit and make magical honeymoon memories in such a special place!

When I heard the news I was sad too. I visited the Azure Window and Gozo and have great memories and a ton of photos of what it was – gorgeous!
the sea created the beauty thousand of years ago and the sea has now destroyed it
my visit included a boat ride on the inland sea by local for €5 so I could see the Azure Window from the water – great memories of Gozo

Man, I was so sad to hear that the Azure Window had collapsed… We weren’t able to see it in time, and it’s truly a reminder that nothing ever lasts forever. Which makes travel memories like yours all the more special. Thanks for sharing about your special times in Malta! What a great place for a honeymoon. 🙂

(Also, we’re also huge GOT nerds, and we seated the family at our wedding to the main theme song played on the piano. Worth it!)